Hand-held electric lanterns and heavy-duty flashlights are items typically found in retail outlets such as catalogue showrooms, appliance stores and household electronics stores. These devices are frequently purchased by consumers for use in the home and in relation to leisure activities such as camping, hiking or the like. The prior art electric lanterns generally comprise a housing sized to accommodate a large, rectangularly configured battery (e.g. a 12 volt lantern battery). Attached to the housing is a handle member and a lamp/lens assembly which is electrically connected to the battery disposed within the housing. The prior art heavy-duty flashlights generally comprise an elongate housing defining a hollow, cylindrically configured handle portion and a bell-shaped portion formed at one end of the handle portion. The bell-shaped portion is sized and configured to accommodate the lens and lamp of the flashlight, with the handle portion being adapted to receive four or more D-size batteries in end-to-end fashion which are electrically connected to the lamp.
Since both the electric lanterns and heavy duty flashlights are generally adapted to produce a brightness output of greater intensity than smaller conventional flashlights, the housings thereof are largely sized to accommodate the power supply needed to facilitate such light transmission, i.e., the four or more linearly aligned D-size batteries or 12 volt lantern battery. Due to the large size of the prior art electric lantern and heavy duty flashlight housings and the manner in which the battery or batteries are disposed therein, the resultant weight of the lantern or flashlight is typically both excessive and unbalanced, thus making the handling thereof cumbersome and uncomfortable.
In addition to the foregoing, the prior art electric lanterns and heavy duty flashlights are generally not adapted to alternatively generate a floodlight or spotlight by selectively diverging or collimating the beam of light transmitted from the lens. In those lanterns and flashlights which are adapted to produce both flood and spotlights, the divergence or collimation of the beam of light is generally accomplished by varying the position of a reflector relative the lamp or bulb. However, the assembly needed to facilitate the adjustment in the positioning of the reflector often comprises a large number of structural elements, thus further adding to the overall size and weight of the device.
The present invention specifically addresses the deficiencies associated with the prior art hand-held electric lanterns and heavy duty flashlights by providing a low-profile flashlight/spotlight which is adapted to selectively transmit divergent or collimated beams of light, and is provided in a thin and compact housing which is weight balanced for ease of handling.